The Game Boy Advance (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2001, and in mainland China as iQue Game Boy Advance on June 8, 2004. The GBA is part of the sixth generation of video game consoles. The original model was followed in 2003 by the Game Boy Advance SP, a redesigned model with a frontlit screen and clamshell form factor. A newer revision of the SP with a backlit screen was released in 2005. A miniaturized redesign, the Game Boy Micro, was released in September 2005.
A handheld game console, or simply handheld console, is a small, portable self-contained video game console with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are smaller than home video game consoles and contain the console, screen, speakers, and controls in one unit, allowing people to carry them and play them at any time or place.
Pokémon Pikachu, also known as Pocket Pikachu (ポケットピカチュウ) in Japan, is a limited series of two portable Pokémon digital pets featuring the famous yellow electric-type Pokémon, Pikachu. It debuted on March 27, 1998, in Japan, on November 2, 1998 in North America, and in December 1998 in Europe.
The Nintendo DS is a foldable handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tandem, a built-in microphone and support for wireless connectivity. Both screens are encompassed within a clamshell design similar to the Game Boy Advance SP. The Nintendo DS also features the ability for multiple DS consoles to directly interact with each other over Wi-Fi within a short range without the need to connect to an existing wireless network. Alternatively, they could interact online using the now-defunct Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Its main competitor was Sony's PlayStation Portable during the seventh generation of video game consoles.
Boulder Dash is a 2D maze-puzzle video game released in 1984 by First Star Software for Atari 8-bit computers. It was created by Canadian developers Peter Liepa and Chris Gray. The player controls Rockford, who collects treasures while evading hazards.
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, and is the first handheld installment in the PlayStation line of consoles. As a seventh generation console, the PSP competed with the Nintendo DS.
Meteos is a 2005 tile-matching video game developed by Q Entertainment and published by Bandai for the Nintendo DS. It was produced by Q Entertainment founder Tetsuya Mizuguchi and designed by Masahiro Sakurai. Meteos was inspired by the video game Missile Command (1980), the film The Matrix (1999) and the television series 24 (2001-2010).
Pac-Man World 3 is a platform video game developed by Blitz Games and published by Namco for the PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, and Microsoft Windows. The Nintendo DS version was ported by Human Soft. Released in 2005, it is the third and final installment in the Pac-Man World trilogy and the only one to not be released in Japan. It also features a speaking Pac-Man for the first time ever outside of the cartoon series.
Tetris DS is a puzzle video game developed and published by Nintendo. It was released for the Nintendo DS on March 20, 2006, in North America, April 13, 2006, in Australia, April 21, 2006, in Europe, and April 27, 2006, in Japan. An installment of the Tetris franchise, the game supports up to ten players locally, and supported online multiplayer of up to four players using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection prior to its discontinuation.
Crash Boom Bang!, known in Japan as Crash Bandicoot Festival, is a party video game developed by Dimps and published by Vivendi Universal Games for the Nintendo DS. It was released in Japan in July 2006, North America and Europe in October 2006 and Australia in November 2006; the international releases were published under the Sierra Entertainment brand.
Crystal Mines II is a puzzle video game designed and programmed by Ken Beckett for Color Dreams. It was licensed to Atari Corporation for the Lynx handheld system. The game is a sequel to Crystal Mines for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Both releases are similar to Boulder Dash, a genre which has since become known as "rocks and diamonds" games.
MySims is a video game developed by EA Redwood Shores and published by Electronic Arts as a spin-off to Maxis' The Sims franchise for the Wii and Nintendo DS in September 2007, re-released for Microsoft Windows and mobile phones in 2008, and for BlackBerry in 2009.
Cake Mania is a cooking time management video game developed and published by Sandlot Games in 2006. Some ports of Cake Mania have different titles; the Wii version is known as Cake Mania: In the Mix!, and the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable versions are titled Cake Mania: Bakers Challenge. Cake Mania received mixed reviews from critics, with some reviewers praising the game's 'addictive' and 'simple' casual gameplay, while others criticized this as being 'repetitive' and 'shallow'.
Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command is a turn-based tactics game set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, released in 2007 for the PlayStation Portable and Nintendo DS. It was developed by Ubisoft RedLynx. The game features three Space Marine Chapters pitted against three Legions of Chaos battling it out on the planet of Ruhr III. The game features units from the tabletop wargame.
Mario Party DS is a 2007 party video game developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. It is the second handheld game in the Mario Party series, as well as the last game in the series to be developed by Hudson Soft, as all subsequent titles have been developed by NDcube. The game was later released on the Virtual Console for the Wii U in April 2016.
The Sims 2: Castaway is the third console spin-off of the life simulation video game The Sims 2 for the Wii, Nintendo DS (NDS), PlayStation 2 (PS2) and PlayStation Portable (PSP). It is also available on mobile phones; Nokia offered Castaway on the Ovi Store. A roughly similar game, The Sims Castaway Stories, is available for personal computers, but is not a direct port of Castaway.
The Japanese multinational consumer electronics company Nintendo has developed seven home video game consoles and multiple portable consoles for use with external media, as well as dedicated consoles and other hardware for their consoles. As of September 30, 2021, in addition to Nintendo Switch, Nintendo has sold over 863.07 million hardware units.
The Nintendo DSi is a dual-screen handheld game console released by Nintendo. The console launched in Japan on November 1, 2008, and worldwide beginning in April 2009. It is the third iteration of the Nintendo DS, and its primary market rival was Sony's PlayStation Portable (PSP). The fourth iteration, entitled Nintendo DSi XL, is a larger model that launched in Japan on November 21, 2009, and worldwide beginning in March 2010. Development of the DSi began in late 2006, and the handheld was unveiled during an October 2008 Nintendo conference in Tokyo. Consumer demand convinced Nintendo to produce a slimmer handheld with larger screens than the DS Lite. Consequently, Nintendo removed the Game Boy Advance (GBA) cartridge slot to improve portability without sacrificing durability.
Boulder Dash-XL is an action-puzzle video game developed by Catnip Games and published by Kalypso Media for the Xbox 360 (XBLA) in July 2011. It is part of the Boulder Dash series. A PC version was released later in 2011. A Nintendo 3DS and iOS ports were released in 2012. The 3DS port is known as Boulder Dash-XL 3D.
